When it comes to energy savings, mother really does know best

To celebrate Mother’s Day, I thought it fitting that I look back over some lessons that my mother imposed on me as a child, and a teenager, and in fact an adult (OK Mum, I will do a spell check!) ...

Lessons which I now interpret to be subtle forms of energy saving tips!

After all, if money doesn’t grow on trees, I’d better save where I can.

“If you’re not in your bedroom, why is the light still on?”

In the innocent days of my youth when I had no logical understanding of how the TV, the lights and my games console actually worked, an electricity bill couldn’t have been further from my mind. Nowadays, any letter that comes through the door is opened with anticipation and dread. In fact, ensuring the lights in empty rooms (including my bedroom) are off is one of my new favourite “adult” hobbies - I knew I should have kept that games console!

“Were you born in a barn?”

For years I never truly understood what this meant – in fact, I didn’t really care what it meant. Like with most rhetorical questions that my mother posed, it was always met with an eye roll. But now, as with my electricity bill, savings on my heating bills is another force to be reckoned with. I’ve finally realised that keeping doors closed helps the room you’re in to heat up quicker and saves the hot air from escaping and wastefully heating up a vacant hall or landing.

“Dinners ready, hurry up…Don’t let your food get cold!”

First of all, the energy it takes for your oven to cook is surprisingly high. Did you know an hour of oven cooking every day can cost upwards of £2 a week, or £8 a month, or £96 a year!! And using a microwave to re-heat the food that you’ve left to go cold only helps to increase that number. In fact, I recently learned that your microwave wastes energy just by powering the clock so it’s a good idea to switch it off at the wall.

“No wonder your feet are cold – Put some socks on!”

Aside from hygiene reasons, did you know feet are like heat plates? They have a large surface area and a vast network of blood vessels so they can pass a lot of blood through them to offload heat. Based on that, if you don’t want to lose heat, cover your feet with socks – or slippers of course.

“Don’t run with scissors!”

Ok so as far as I know there is no actual energy saving benefit here, but it wouldn’t be a list of “momisms” without it! Just remember, if you don’t hurt yourself, you might poke someone’s eye out with it… and no one would want that to happen.

Happy Mother's Day

We hope you have a lovely day celebrating a special parent, grandparent or guardian!

Ellina Webb is a Marketing Specialist at Mitsubishi Electric.

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